The Old Wraxall Mill - Nailsea and District Local History Society

.Nailsea and District Local History SocietyTHE OLD WRAXALL MILLPENNANT REPRINTS N O 12WRAXALLBY PHYLLIS HORMAN AND WILFRED REW

.Nailsea and District Local History SocietyPreviously published February 2003 by Nailsea & District LocalHistory SocietyThis ebook version, © Phyllis Horman, Wilfred Rew andNailsea & District Local History Society, PO Box 1089, NailseaBS48 2YP, has been made available in June 2005, so that anindividual may download and read this document, for privateresearch purposes only. It must not be reproduced or passedto a third party without written permission of the copyrightholders.

.Nailsea and District Local History SocietyTHE OLD WRAXALL MILLQuite a few years ago Wilfred and I spent a day atTrowbridge Record Office looking through the "CalleyPapers". Among these was an Indenture dated 10thSeptember 1709, between John Codrington (of WraxallLodge later Court) and Joseph Emery, which contained a leaseof premises."Granted by late wife Elizabeth (Codrington) before herinter-marriage, by her then name of Elizabeth Gorges ofWraxall, unto Thomas Emery, his executors, administratorsand aforesigns for the term of fourscore and nineteen years,determinable on the several draughts of the said ThomasEmery and Mary his wife and Jane Emery his daughter, whoare still living. As in consideration of the rents, heriots,covenants for building and other reservations and agreementsherein after received and contained on the part of the saidJoseph Emery, his executors and administrators to be paid,observed and performed and for diverse and otherconsiderations, the said John Codrington---- to Joseph Emeryall that water Grist Mill commonly called or known by the3

Nailsea and District Local History Society.name of Wraxhall's Mill, situate and lying and being in theparish of Wraxall aforesaid, and also the dwelling housethereunto, now or lately belonging on the (loft?) or platewhere the same lately stood. The same dwelling house havingbeen lately burnt down and consumed by accidental fire. Andall ways paths, passages, water courses, ponds, ffloud gates,(stanks?), banks, commons and all other appurtenances to thesaid Mill and premises belonging --- For fourscore andnineteen years to the aforesaid Joseph Emery, Elizabeth hiswife and Thomas their son now aged about two years, ----yearly and every year the sum of eight shillings of lawfulmoney of Great Britain, on the twenty ninth day of Septemberand twenty fifth of March in every years by equal portions.And also by paying to John Codrington, his heirs etc andupon the decease of them Joseph Emery, Elizabeth and sonThomas, the sum of sixteen shillings like money, for and inthe name of an herriott. If they shall be behind with either orboth by the space of twenty one days, they shall become oneand ought to be paid as aforesaid, being lawfully demanded,and no other distress to be had or taken on the premises,sufficient for the levying thereof. Then and in such case itshall and may be lawful for the said John Codrington ---- tore-enter the same and re-possess to his former estate.Anything herein contained to the contrary thereof, inanywise, not withstanding. Joseph Emery doth covenant,promise and grant to John Codrington to pay from time totime the rents etc also to rebuild the said late dwelling house,or erect and build a new dwelling house in the room andstead thereof, with such outhousings and conveniences as heshall think proper. And complete in a firm and substantial andworkmanlike manner and roof with tile and not with thatch,straw or helms, and keep all buildings tiled and not suffer tobe thatched and keep all buildings, banks etc. in good andsufficient repair".This intrigued us, so we decided to try to find where this millhad been. We studied old maps and found that the marked4

Nailsea and District Local History Society.river did not correspond with the present day one. We walkedthe field on the east side of Wraxall House because weremembered from our childhood that there were two smallstone bridges in the middle of a field, seemingly with no realpurpose. In fact the bridges are over an old dried out riverbed. We traced this back to the present river, found wherethe old one had been blocked and a new bed created. This israised several feet above the original floor of the field to thesouth. Presumably, when the mill was built at the side ofWraxall House, this new raised bed gave enough power in theflow of the water for the overshot wheel which powered themill.There is of course the possibility that the new mill cottagewas built on the site of the one that was burnt prior to thelease of 1709, and the mill buildings moved to this site whichwould account for the river diversion.Further back in the river bank is a flood hatch and some ofthe water still runs into a channel which flows to theboundary of Wraxall House and continues through. At a timewhen the house was unoccupied but was being prepared foruse as a residential school for mentally handicapped youngpeople, Wilfred and I were given permission to go to thebottom of the grounds where the river runs. Here we foundtwo pieces of machinery that had controlled the sluice for thewater flow. There is an ornamental lake nearby which couldhave been a mill pond, also a bridge over the end of the lakeand where the leat begins. This bridge leads from the Housegrounds to a field and also to various out-buildings. Fromthese buildings there was a large, high wooden door leadingonto the main road. The door has been replaced by a smallerone and a metal gate. This older mill would almost certainlyhave had an undershot wheel. Near the House are at leasttwo old mill stones but from which mill they came from, wedo not know.5

.We made a second visit to the site taking Margaret Thomaswith us. She and Wilfred measured the leat, took photos ofthe remains of the controls and estimated the size of thewheel by what seemed to be a bearing in the bank, using thisas the approximate centre of the wheel and measuring to thebed of the leat.Nailsea and District Local History SocietyWith reference to the maps that we had studied. It seems thatDay and Masters shows the old river bed. Greenwood 1822shows the new bed, and the Wraxall Tithe 1837 shows both.It could be presumed by this that the new mill may have beenbuilt somewhere between, say, 1780 and 1820. We havewondered if the reason for the flood hatch being built intothe river bank was to allow both mills to run in conjunctionfor a while or only to provide water for the lake once the oldmill had ceased to be worked. There is a photo by WilliamRavenhill Stock of the lake which would date from the mid1800's.As a matter of interest, the Wraxall Churchwardens Accountsmention occasions when the bridge by the mill was repaired,one date being 1726,and in 1764 "Paid Godwin Stanburymaking two bridges below the Mill £4-11s-2d" There wasalso a Mill Lane mentioned when Chas Bull was paid in 1727for mending fallen banks by order of Colonel Codrington.Mr Bodman refers to some of the millers. The Emery familydefinitely ran the older mill and probably William Curtis did aswell. William Vowles and John Day would have been at thenew mill. Two more millers can be named. According to theWraxall parish registers, in April 1656 John Wallis of Wraxall,miller married Ann Jones, and in March 1693 "old King Cableof the mill" was buried. Incidentally it was Mrs Griffin and notMrs Griffiths who sold sweets and tobacco from the millcottage.Previously published in Pennant No 86